"crust" news and stories

Since we were talking about the best apples to use in making pies last week, it put me in the mood to make one myself. I love making pies because, even though there is some prep work involved, the procedure is very straightforward. Also, I really enjoy making homemade pie crust. It's fun to get your fingers dirty and a flaky, homemade crust is better than one you can buy at the store - especially because you can taste the work that went into making it.

If you've never made a homemade pie before, winter is the perfect time to start and apple is the best kind to start with. Not only are the apples easy to work with, but the fact that the weather is colder makes it easier to handle the dough for the crust. In summer, you need to work faster to keep the butter from melting as you work it in to the flour. After the jump, you'll find a photo-heavy, step-by-step guide to making both the crust and the whole pie. I make my crusts with a combination of shortening (non-hydrogenated, for those who are concerned) and butter. The combination of butter, which adds flavor and some leavening, and shortening, which adds tenderness and flakiness will produce the best crusts. I use a 3-1 ratio, so not much shortening is needed.

When fall comes around, pies are one of the best desserts you can bring to the table, whether you are opting for pumpkin or the fruitier flavors from apples, pears and cranberries. The crust is usually the most difficult part for most cooks, but once you have mastered the dough-making technique (or have broken down and purchased ready made-dough), the job is only halfway done. The second challenge is to make the crust look presentable. Fortunately, there are a couple of gadgets that can help. One is a lattice cutter, which can simply be pressed down into the dough to punch out a traditional-looking, although not actually interwoven, lattice top for your pie. If you want to make your lattice a little more creative, you can opt for the new oak-leaf lattice cutter, instead. The other thing that will really spruce up your pie is a set of piecrust cutters, which punch out little seasonal shapes from your dough. They can be used to create vents in the top layer of the crust or you can punch out shapes from the unused scraps of crust and use them to decorate the surface of the pie.

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Mini desserts are wonderful things. Not only are they automatically cute due to their size, but you will never have to worry about a cake being large enough or whether there will be enough ice cream/gelato to go around, since all you have to do is match up the number of desserts with the number of guests you need to serve. They also provide built-in portion control if you are just making them for yourself. These Mini Pumpkin Cheesecakes, made by Nicole at Pinch My Salt, are a great way to eat a rich dessert without going overboard because indulging in one (or two) is much better than indulging in a whole cake! The pumpkin cheesecakes have a lot of fall flavor since she combined pumpkin with a touch or maple syrup in the filling and used a spiced graham cracker crust for the base. When serving, though it is not pictured, Nicole topped these with whipped cream, lightly sweetened and spiced with cinnamon.

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The crust of the bread is the best part as far as we are concerned, but for some reason, there are a lot of kids who don't like crust on their bread. Is it the taste, the color or is a peanut butter and jelly sandwich just more fun without a crust? While philosophers ponder the question, you'll probably be cutting the crust of the sandwiches for your kids or for yourself, since there are plenty of adults who like to eat their sandwiches in this slightly nostalgic way.

Put down that knife and check out the Crust Cutter. The stainless steel cutter measures 4"x4" and is designed to remove all crusts with one swift motion. It also folds flat, for easy storage. The only downside is that once you've made it easy to remove the crust from the bread, you might never get Junior to actually give them a try. At least he'll be able to cut the crusts of his own sandwiches. Price: $3.95.

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While reading the New York Times magazine yesterday, I noticed a piece about pies. Rhubarb pies, to be specific. The recipe is not what caught my eye, though, but this statement: "Pies cannot be successfully mass-produced."

I disagree. And I think that a lot of other people would, too.

The Times' argument goes along the lines that there is no way that a non-handmade crust could come close to equaling a homemade crust. And the Times must know some good cooks, because I know plenty of people who couldn't make even a graham cracker crust, let alone a "real" crust. Store bought crusts may not be showstoppers, but they serve their purpose in ease and reliability. They don't taste half bad, either, especially when you buy the unbaked, frozen crusts.

And in terms of store-bought pies, which can certainly qualify as "mass produced" compared to homemade based purely on quantity, places like Bakers Square and Marie Callender's have won scores of awards from the American Pie Council on taste and appearance. And I know that I have enjoyed a slice of pie from Marie Callender's more than a few times, even though I bake my own pies, too.

Is a middle-of-the-road store pie going to rival the best homemade crust? No, but not everyone is in a position to make, buy or eat the best pie in the world and that doesn't mean that they can never have a good pie, which is what a blanket statement like "pies cannot be successfully mass-produced" seems to imply.

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